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Clinical Diagnostic Approach in Veterinary Medicine
This article outlines the systematic framework for reaching an accurate diagnosis in veterinary clinical practice, emphasizing the importance of the signalment, patient history, physical examination, and diagnostic testing. It provides a structured methodology for veterinarians to minimize error and optimize patient outcomes across all species.
Clinical summary
- Diagnostic approach
- The diagnostic process in veterinary medicine is a multi-modal approach integrating clinical reasoning, the diagnostic cycle, and evidence-based medicine. It begins with data collection via signalment, history, and a thorough physical exam, leading to the formulation of a problem list and differential diagnosis. Diagnostic testing is then utilized to rule in or rule out specific etiologies through clinical pathology, imaging, and histopathology.
References
- [1]Nelson, R.W. and Couto, C.G.. Small Animal Internal Medicine (2019)
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